New addition to the “fleet”.

Replaced a clip on the rear parcel shelf as it was rattling about. £9 for two genuine Alfa ones. Also a new hand brake gaiter as the original one has a broken clip, sits nice and snug again now. Another genuine Alfa part for all of £23.
I’m thinking of re-naming the car Trigger’s Broom……
Code reader is great, deleted the one historic code from this week, could be a sticking EGR. Easy to clean/fix on these, so if it happens again I will sort that.
First fill up of the devils juice this week, says there are 780 miles in the tank. We shall see!

 

A journey down to Bognor Regis in the old Alfa today, back again tomorrow.
Threw up a CEL again this morning on start up, read the code when I got here, P0403 EGR issue. Runs fine, but looks like a new EGR would help. Given they are cheap enough, I have ordered a new one, all of £30. Basically a serviceable part on these, only last a finite amount of miles, and looks like the original.
Surprisingly comfortable for a 3.5 hour journey, the seats are lovely, all the better after an AG leather clean and then AG leather balm treatment.

 

A few jobs sorted this afternoon:
- new EGR fitted. Definitely smoother on tick over, well, as smooth as an on derv can be. Hopefully that’s sorted the motor control error issue.
- creaking clutch pedal sorted, needed some spray grease down the slave rod, then replaced the boot. Silence is now golden.
- new parcel shelf grommet fitted, 99p bargain from eBay. No more shelf rattling against the boot.

 

The standard position of an Alfa owner:

 

I have a sneaking suspicion that your enjoying the Alfa more than the 440i....

 

He won’t be when he’s stuck on the side of the M1…….
I hope that never happens btw Mathew…. It’s a truly dreadful experience…. And that’s if you can get to the side….


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Famous last words I’m sure, but I’ve been stuck on the motorway twice only. Once with a split water pipe on the M40 (old Saab 9-3 diesel) and one in the middle of France (not so old Alfa 159 with a set of chewed swirl flaps).
I’ve got a basic repair kit in the boot to cover such things as split hoses, cables and the like, also have the top RAC cover as a back up.
I’m of the mind that an old car like this should, repeat should, have ironed out most of its failures. I’m keeping a keen eye on the maintenance to try to get ahead of any failures. We shall see.
I have a good friend who had a brand new X5 delivered to his place in Spain back in 2008, delivered there so he could drive it back home. 250 miles in and the the engine gave up, total failure. Had to be put on the back of a truck and taken back to Worcester. So it’s not just old sheds that can fail….

 

Another few hundred miles this week, no sign of the CEL so far. Hopefully the new EGR fixed this.
Adjusted the handbrake as the warning light would ping on when driving over bumps etc. I bent the tab that sits on the switch so it pushes down for longer. Billy Bodge car fixes are always satisfying.

 

I’ll grant you that …
Stansted and back for me this past week in the trusty polo… all with no events.. brand new tyres fitted helped cope superbly with the standing water …. Between 23.59 and 0300….
LGW Tuesday This week coming…



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A builders bag fits perfectly in the back.

 

2000 miles in the Alfa and all is well.
Chugging along nicely, averaging 56.1mpg over all this time, some town/tip driving and lots of motorway.
I’m finding the joy in having a car I can park absolutely anywhere, only space in the train station car park between two massive badly parked SUVs? No problem!

 

I’m sure if you push harder Matthew you could get 2 in there.:..


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It was merely a test fit…..

 

The service kit, oil/air/fuel filters/oil/sump bolt/washer, was delivered this week. Looking forward to spending some time under the old Alfa, need to check the oil drip out, it’s banned from the drive until I can solve that.
Won’t be doing it while this rain persists, will need a dry weekend.

 

Can’t ruin the immaculate block paving…


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Needed to change the NS dipped bulb today, of course that meant taking the bumper off and then the headlight, can't beat a good bit of Italian design!
While the bumper was off I saw why the NS front was constantly covered in condensation internally, thought it was because of a "crack" in the plastic. The headlight was actually half-full of water...! the hole in the bottom corner is perfectly situated to collect the drain water from the bonnet/wing channel. Drained it all out. I've done a bodge repair with some clear sealant tape to cover the hole, will see if that eases the condensation.
Unfortunately new headlights are utterly impossible to find, unless I buy a set of LHD and disassemble them to use the lens cover.

 

Is there no headlights on ebay or at the breakers?

Looks like they could do with a sand and polish too, to get rid of the yellowing...

 

I’ve got a headlight recovery kit to use on them, waiting for them to dry out first. Might need to take them off and bake them.
UK versions come up on eBay occasionally, but are steep. There is one with all the tabs broken and scratches on the lens for £65 on there at the moment. I’m keeping an eye out on FB, Gumtree etc as well.

 

Really useful info. Would this be the case for headlights with clear lenses? There are no beam deflectors in these, the plastic lens is purely a cover rather than part of the beam pattern.